May the Odds Be Ever in Your Favor

Only 9 more days until The Hunger Games hits theaters.
Will you be watching?

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Ok so my number one rule has always been "read the book before you see the movie". That being said, I just finished Jonathan Safran Foer's Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. The narrator is eight year old Oskar Schell who can only be described as unique. He has many different talents and fancies himself as an entrepreneur in many different ways. He lives in New York City with his mother and father, and his paternal grandmother who lives in the apartment building across the street. Oskar endures a horrible tragedy when his father is killed in the World Trade Center attacks. Oskar is the last person to hear his father’s voice- he had called and left messages on their phone right before the tower collapsed. He keeps the tapes hidden from his own mother and grandmother, secretly out of shame. Finding it hard to deal with the death of his father, Oskar frequents his closet and lies in his old suits. He is looking through his father's things one night when he discovers a key with the mysterious label "Black" written on it. He sees the key as a challenge- find the person who it belongs to and learn more about their connection to his father. He uses the most practical method he can think of, visit every "Black" household listed in the phonebook in alphabetical order and ask if they knew his father.

What I really liked this book was that had a story within the story. Combined with Oskar's sorrow of 9/11 and losing his father to terrorism, the story mirrors the Dreseden fire-bombings which both of his grandparents were involved in. As Oskar is on his quest to find out what really happened to his father, we learn about his grandparents odd relationship and how Oskar's grandfather was an absentee father to his own dad.

I gave this book four stars. I couldn't put it down. The plight of Oskar's family was quite emotional and it made me rethink of how 9/11 affected so many people in different ways. However I have talked to people who said they didn't like the book. They thought it was pretentious and that Oskar's vocabulary was unrealistic for an eight year old. I really enjoyed this work of realistic fiction, but I'm not sure that they will be able to capture the essence of this bestseller in a movie.Whatever the case, I will be ready to dive into Foer's next novel!

The Hunger Games

You just might be living under a rock if you haven't heard of Suzanne Collin's thrilling book The Hunger Games. The book focuses on heroine Katniss Everdeen living in a post apocalyptic country known as "Panem". Panem is divided into twelve districts and the capitol. Each year two children are chosen from each district- a boy and a girl. They are expected to fight in a highly televised event called "The Hunger Games" where they must fight each other for their lives. Upon hearing that her sister has been chosen for the event, Katniss sacrifices herself so that her sister will not have to compete. Recently the movie trailer for The Hunger Games was released and it does not disappoint- What do you think? Will you see the movie when it is released? Have you enjoyed the book so far? Check out the trailer and give us your reaction!

Get Carded!

AHS students- you have a fantastic opportunity coming your way!  Get Carded Day 2011 is Avon High School. We are having our friends over from Avon Free Public Library to visit and help students who have not had the chance to sign up for public library cards. There are some really cool reasons to visit us on Get Carded Day:

1) Its free! If you have never had a card before, you can sign up for one now.This allows you to have free access to books, magazines, newspapers,movies, and several online databases. With an Avon Free Public Library card, you can also access materials from most libraries in the state.

2) If you have an item that you were afraid to return  because it was overdue, you can return it today. All previous fines will be forgiven!

3) If your previous library card has expired then you can renew it and get a brand new card!

4) Did I mention you have FREE access to thousands of resources?

5) Candy will await you too!

Hurry down and get your library card!October 26th - 9AM- 1PM  in the AHS Commons

Hope to see you there!

AHS Book Club

Do you love to read?  Consider joining the AHS book club. We are a club that will be meeting every other week to discuss current books and literary topics. This book club will truly be a "meeting of the minds". AHS book blog is also looking for students who are willing to share what they have been reading. Be a guest editor on our blog and share reviews of books that you have read for class or for pleasure. The sign up sheet is on the library counter.

Banned Website Awareness Day | Wednesday, September 28th, 2011

           When someone hears about censorship in schools they most often think about books. With today’s technology that is just not the case anymore.  On September 28^th, the American Association of School Libraries observes “Banned Website Awareness Day”.  This day is to bring awareness to the overzealousness of some school systems when it comes to filtering. Has there ever been a situation when you legitimately were looking to access a website for educational purposes and found that you were blocked from entering it?  It happens more and more every day. An important part of teaching future learners information literacy skills is having them be able to make their own credible choices. Students need to be able to look at a website and evaluate whether or not it is something that they should be taking information from. It is a skill that every student should develop.  What is your opinion AHS students/faculty? Do you think that we generally have free reign on most WebPages? Is there any websites that you feel you should have access to for school purposes?  Is there a specific incident that you can remember feeling frustration?  Share your individual experiences in the comment section.

Welcome

This is the first official post of Avon High School Library's book blog. This blog will be an extension of the library's already stellar site. The library blog will be updated frequently and have student imput. Any given day, you may visit the library blog and find the discussion is about current events, new books, and new trends. Are you looking for a good book to read? Book club members will be guest editors and write reviews on the lastest and greatest books we have in the library. Please visit the blog often and let us know you are reading by commenting!